The workplace is going through one of the largest change management exercises in history. As more industries integrate AI, companies are redefining job roles, required skills, and business operations. In 2025, expect this trend to pick up even more steam with the rise of agentic AI. The question is no longer whether AI will impact your work. It’s all about how quickly you can adapt to this new reality. In the final installment of our three-part series, we explore how businesses are adapting to these shifts, what it means for the future of work, and how organizations can stay ahead of disruption.
Related: Predicting the Biggest Trends Across Industries in 2025: Part One
AI-Driven Workplace Transformation
The workplace is undergoing one of the largest change management exercises in history, as AI fundamentally reshapes how work gets done. While 2023 was the year of AI experimentation and 2024 marked its initial adoption, 2025 is when businesses are bracing for significant functional change. Organizations are restructuring workflows, redefining job roles, and navigating an accelerated demand for new skill sets.
The impact is undeniable. By 2030, an estimated 70% of the skills used in most jobs will change. This makes upskilling and reskilling a top priority for businesses worldwide. Even professionals who remain in the same roles will need to adapt as AI automates routine tasks, freeing up human workers for more strategic and creative responsibilities.
Business leaders recognize the urgency of this shift. A recent LinkedIn Work Change Report found that 88% of C-suite executives consider accelerating AI adoption critical in the next year. However, AI’s role extends beyond productivity gains. It’s also expected to drive a cultural shift in the workplace. In fact, 80% of executives believe AI will fuel greater innovation across their teams, fundamentally changing how businesses approach problem-solving and decision-making.
Examples of companies that are using AI to transform their workplaces and processes include:
- Yum Brands: The parent company of Taco Bell, KFC, and Pizza Hut is collaborating with Nvidia to integrate AI technologies into its restaurants. This includes AI-powered voice-ordering systems in drive-thrus and on the phone. Their goal is to shift all orders to digital channels in an effort to boost sales. AI is also improving internal operations through computer vision to assist with order accuracy and filter online feedback.
- Campari Group: By adopting Microsoft 365 Copilot, the Campari Group integrated AI into its employee workflows. So far, this move has resulted in time savings of about two hours per week. The AI tools assist with routine activities such as email management, meeting preparation, content creation, and skill acquisition.
- Colgate-Palmolive: To facilitate AI adoption, Colgate-Palmolive created an internal AI Hub that helps employees develop personalized AI assistants for their tasks without requiring technical expertise. This approach has positively impacted acceptance and integration of AI within the company. It also highlights the importance of user-friendly AI tools to drive organizational change.
Related: Revolutionizing Retail: How AI Powers Consumer Goods Companies
Healthcare and Life Sciences Innovation
The healthcare industry is at the forefront of AI-driven transformation. Innovations span AI-assisted diagnostics, predictive health modeling, personalized medicine, and the automation of administrative tasks. These advancements are already reshaping patient outcomes and reducing costs.
AI-powered medical tools are also accelerating disease detection and streamlining the drug discovery process. Hospitals and pharmaceutical companies are integrating AI to personalize treatments, reduce trial-and-error prescriptions, and optimize healthcare delivery.
At the same time, the intersection of healthcare and climate change is driving a new wave of investment in life sciences innovation. The healthcare sector is expected to invest $65 billion over the next five to eight years in climate-related medical advancements, with the potential to save 6.5 million lives and prevent $5.8 trillion in economic losses. This represents a fraction of the global pharmaceutical industry’s annual R&D spending, yet it has the potential to mitigate up to half of the negative health outcomes linked to climate change.
Examples of companies in the healthcare and life sciences sector that are adopting these strategies include:
- Johnson & Johnson: Johnson & Johnson announced plans to invest over $55 billion in the United States over the next four years to cover the construction of four new manufacturing plants. These facilities will incorporate advanced technologies and AI to improve the drug manufacturing processes. This initiative aims to improve production efficiency and provide a stable supply of critical medications for cancer, immune-mediated, and neurological diseases.
- NHS and E.ON: The UK’s National Health Service (NHS), in partnership with energy company E.ON, is undertaking significant energy efficiency projects to reduce the carbon footprint of healthcare facilities. At Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham, initiatives include installing new windows and constructing a £15 million energy center that uses high-efficiency heat pumps. These measures are expected to cut CO₂ emissions by 10,000 tons annually. This is the equivalent of removing over 2,200 cars from the road.
- Abbott Laboratories: Abbott Laboratories established the Pandemic Defense Coalition. This is a global network focused on detecting and responding to emerging infectious diseases, particularly those exacerbated by climate change. For example, they’ve studied how climate change accelerates the spread of disease-carrying ticks to develop new diagnostic tests for tick-borne diseases. This proactive approach mitigates the health impacts of climate change by focusing on early detection of emerging health threats.
Related: The Future of Integrated Smart Technology: Health & Wellness
Agentic AI and Autonomous Systems
Agentic AI and autonomous systems are capable of planning and executing tasks to achieve specific user-defined goals. Unlike traditional AI that requires continuous human oversight, agentic AI operates with minimal supervision while adhering to predefined guidelines. This paradigm shift empowers organizations to automate complex processes and reduce operational costs. In healthcare, agentic AI addresses critical challenges like staff shortages and administrative burdens.
By automating routine tasks and providing actionable insights, agentic AI frees up clinicians to focus on patient care and improve overall healthcare delivery. Looking ahead, the impact of agentic AI is expected to expand across sectors, including technology, business, and logistics.
Examples of companies that are already implementing agentic AI include:
- Moveworks: Moveworks uses agentic AI to streamline internal communications within enterprises. Their platform autonomously resolves employee IT support issues by understanding and acting upon requests in real-time. This automation provides faster resolution times and increased employee productivity.
- Ford Motor Company: Ford is integrating agentic AI to expedite vehicle design and engineering processes. By utilizing AI agents and advanced GPUs from NVIDIA, Ford plans to reduce the time required for tasks like clay modeling and engineering simulations.
- Capgemini: In partnership with NVIDIA, Capgemini is accelerating the adoption of agentic AI across industries. The goal is to deliver over 100 customized AI agent solutions tailored to specific industry needs, including healthcare, financial services, manufacturing, and telecommunications.
Related: Predicting the Biggest Trends Across Industries in 2025: Part Two
The Future Is Here – Now What?
As we move further into 2025, we’ll be the first to admit that a lot of things feel uncertain, but one thing is crystal clear: consumer demand and technology are rapidly evolving – and the time to innovate is now. At Innovationedge, we continue to track these trends and the emerging shifts that will shape the future of business and the world as we know it. From the latest developments in Web3 to the rise of regenerative supply chains, we provide insights that help companies stay ahead of disruption and leverage new opportunities. Stay connected with us as we explore what’s next.